The Council of Alphas (11)
The Council of Alphas (11)
Talia was nervous and she really wished to sink into Damon's comforting embrace, but she knew that if she gave in to that urge, it would cause more harm than good. It was not the time for Alpha Edward to find out about the relationship between Damon and Talia, not before he shows them what he was up to.
Talia guessed that it would be exaggerated facts to make Damon look bad, but what if Alpha Edward had more than that? She was confident that given enough time, they can prove Damon's innocence, but time was a luxury they didn't have so far.
'I'm right here, kitten.', Damon's voice sounded in Talia's head. He could feel her emotions.
'Sorry for stressing.', Talia responded. 'I just wish we can be done with this and go home.'
The conference room was a large rectangular space with unadorned flat gray walls. A heavy wooden oval table was in the middle and fifteen chairs circled it.
Talia took a seat between Damon and Tony, and Meg stood behind Talia's chair, just how every other Beta was behind his Alpha.
"Remember that while you are here, you won't be able to use your aura and physical violence won't be tolerated.", the Guardian announced from the door.
Another Guardian placed his hands against the wall, and ancient murmurs filled the space as golden runes started flashing from the point where his hands pressed against the wall. The runes swiftly moved in all directions along the walls, covering the floor and ceiling as well, and Talia wondered what's the connection between witches and the Guardians.
With that, the Guardians left the room and closed the door behind them.
'I wish that you are closer to me', Damon's voice sounded in Talia's head.
Talia looked that way to meet his gaze full of concern and she gave him a small smile. 'We are next to each other.'
'I need you closer', he said, and she could see his fingers twitching in a desire to hold onto her hand.
'Just a bit longer.', she pacified him and looked away. It was hard not to touch him, but... 'If Alpha Edward suspects we are mates, he will definitely change his tactics. We need to find out what he is up to.'
Damon leaned backward in his chair. 'He already changed his tactics.'
'What makes you think so?'
'He lost the majority.', Damon said. 'He promised them glory and benefits, yet they wasted their money, and their egos took a hit before anything started. And also, they are scared of you.'
'Of me? Is it because of the Sphere of Power?'
'Partially. No one ever messed with the Midnight Guardians pack, and your display in the lounge reminded them why. The biggest strength of your pack is that no one knows where it is, how many of you are there, and what skills you possess. Alpha Isaac always stayed neutral and didn't meddle in the matters of the other packs. However, you are taking sides, and that scares the shit out of them.'
Talia's anger flared at the mentioning of her so-called father. They had so many abilities and if they used them to help others, their society would be a much better place. But those two Alphas decided to stay in their own realm and look away from the suffering of everyone just to protect their secret. They didn't care about their own daughter, why would they care about non-related strangers? Despicable!
'You can use the fact that they don't know you against them.', Damon spoke into Talia's head again.
'How?'
'They know that they have no chance of winning in a duel against me, so no one will dare to issue a challenge. As for you, they don't know what your strengths are, so they will be extra careful.'
Talia thought how that made sense, and she wanted to see how far she can stretch that.
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"Are we going to start this today?", Maddox's voice broke the silence and Talia realized that they were sitting in that room for minutes and no one spoke a word.
Alpha Richard was the one to respond. "I guess I can start first. I want to bring out a point of one person using his position to bully others."
He made a dramatic pause, and Talia asked, "Since when is losing a bet called bullying?"
Alpha Richard's brows came together in a frown. "I was not talking about you."
"Oh, OK.", Talia responded with a smile. "Please, continue."
Alpha Richard cleared his throat. "This Alpha came into power early and quickly showed his arrogance in defying the rules that were set by our ancestors…"
"Are you sure you are not talking about me?", Talia interrupted him again.
"Yes, I am sure.", Alpha Richard squeezed through his teeth.
"As I was saying… he ignored the rules set by our ancestors as he…"
"What if they were obsolete rules?", Talia interrupted him again. When he glared daggers at Talia, she looked at others while continuing, "I don't know what rules Alpha Richard is talking about, but we are all aware that our society changed in time, so the rules we follow should be adjusted. Or would you still cut off a hand to a thief? Or stone to death a woman who had premarital sex?" Talia regretted not studying more, because she would have more examples for this occasion.
"Alpha Talia", Alpha Edward interjected. "Didn't your parents teach you not to interrupt when someone else is talking?"
"Yes, they did. They told me not to interrupt when someone who is ranked above me is talking."
'PFT!', Maddox was unable to suppress the laughter that bubbled in him, but he quickly changed it into a cough.
An angry vein popped on Alpha Richard's forehead, and he pointed a shaky finger at Talia. "You… You…"
"Calm down, Alpha Richard.", Damon said.
"Calm down!?", he hissed. "How can I calm down if she is always interrupting and disrespecting?"
"My parents also taught me that respect is earned, not given, Alpha Richard.", Talia said calmly. "As for interrupting, if you get to the point I would be more eager to listen."
"FINE!", Alpha Richard shouted. He was frustrated that this girl who was young enough to be his daughter was acting like he was not important, and he was also angry that everyone else just listened, and no one thought of reprimanding her outrageous behavior.
"At the recent event at the Lightclaw pack, Alpha Damon used despicable methods to embarrass me, my daughter, and to force an annual tribute from my pack.", Alpha Richard said. He prepared a flowery way of saying this, one that would make Damon more guilty, but Talia pushed his buttons to the point of him forgetting what he wanted to say.
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